ARD200, BT-SVS200, JVC TU-AD1000, AKAI SX1000, ALBA-IRD7000

Does it have a 22kHz tone generator? No. It has a pulse oscillator which is designed to work an LNB1/LNB2 switch called a "Global uVH7" where "u" is actually the Greek letter "mu". This external switch is waterproof and can be dish-mounted to select between two LNBs for (eg) Astra and Hot Bird.

Will it work with an Enhanced LNB? Yes, but the tuning range might be limited. It's sometimes a struggle to get "Sky Sports 3".

I get a "Card Invalid" message on the screen but the card is OK. Check C77 (4n7F), C76 (1nF) beneath decoder on main board for dry solder joints.

The receiver kills Sky cards. Locate Q44, Q45 and Q46 which are located beneath the position where the Sky card sits. Solder together the two adjacent legs (b-e) on each transistor. This prevents Vpp from exceeding 5 volts on the card.

I get only a blank screen. Q21 (BCP69) is burnt out. RF modulator short circuit.

I get mostly a blank screen but, if I tune a channel very slowly by pressing the arrow key repeatedly, I can see a very sparkly picture of very poor quality. Almost certainly faulty tuner module.

I get a blank screen except that I see a clear picture for a moment as I change channel. Probably a faulty ASIC chip (unavailable) but possibly a faulty decoder board. Try a working decoder from another receiver or try an external decoder.All voltages are too low. Repair PSU as described in Repair Manual edition 4 but also replace Q53 (BC546B) if necessary.

I get very streaky decoded pictures: Replace C177 100uF on decoder board.

I'm having trouble getting my receiver to work with a D2-Mac decoder. Sometimes it takes a long time for the picture to lock up, sometimes the system doesn't decode at all.

Use a fully-wired Scart cable, not the video-plus-audio type. Call up option 7 in the installation menu and select BBAND video on the DECoder output then press STORE Call up the LNB setup menu, option 6, and select VID LVL on LNB A. Reduce the level to 4,3,2 or 1 (the lower the better, consistent with a good picture). Select channel setup (option 2) and if necessary set the source to DECoder. (This advice from "Better Satellite" magazine seems to work with a Philips Visiopass D2Mac decoder).

Note from Ken Hodges: "I have done mods to this receiver to give flat baseband out instead of clamped Pal baseband on the decoder scart. Cut the track from pin 53 of the ASIC (U1) to transistor Q1 base and link Q1 base to the video out pin of the tuner at opposite end of R164 1K0 SMD".

Are spare parts available? In general, no. This receiver was made by the Cambridge Computer Company which no longer exists. A few spares (tuners) were stocked by South Coast Technology in Portsmouth but they apparently went out of business in December 1998.

Is there a factory reset?

Yes. Hold the channel down button on the front panel while you reconnect 230 volt mains power. Now release the button and wait 30 seconds. The receiver will go to channel 1. All channels will be reset and all channel names on screen will be deleted. To reset to German default channels, hold the channel "up" button instead.

Can I change the decoder video level?

Yes. This often cures "no decoder messages" or "intermittent scrambling". On the remote control handset, hold the "mute" button and the ">" (right arrow) button together. The screen will display the video level number (from 1 to 8). Use the arrow buttons to select level "4". To store the change, hold the "up" arrow button on the receiver and press "store" on the remote control handset. You might have to do this several times before the change is stored. Now make sure that the video level in the installation menu is also set to "4".

These notes are taken from THE Professional SCREWRIVER EXPERT'S GUIDE to satellite receivers Repairs & Modifications